Boron-induced construction of two-dimensional layered Mo/Mo2C electrocatalyst to boost both alkaline and acidic hydrogen evolution reaction

High-performance non-precious-metal electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in both acidic and alkaline media are urgently required to replace expensive Pt-based catalysts. Herein, we report an effective molten salt-assisted boron-induced phase transformation strategy for the preparation of boron-doped Mo/Mo2C (B-Mo/Mo2C). The B-Mo/Mo2C electrocatalyst maintains two-dimensional (2D) layered structure of the precursor material to expose more catalytic active sites. Due to the suitable doping and the successful construction of the heterostructure, the efficient electron transfer between Mo and Mo2C is generated and its electronic structure is reasonably regulated. The obtained B-Mo/Mo2C electrocatalyst exhibits excellent HER performance with overpotentials of 108 mV (110) and 191 mV (110) in 1.0 M KOH and 0.5 M H2SO4 solutions, respectively. These results demonstrate the efficiency of the noble-metal-free B-Mo/Mo2C electrocatalyst and highlight its broad applicability.